According to CRI, with improved living standards, ageing population, and increasing obesity rate, the incidence of diabetes has been climbing in China. By the end of 2017, the number of diabetic patients in China exceeded 100 million, ranking first in the world and promoting the development of the diabetes drug market.

Acarbose was developed by Bayer in 1975 and first launched in Switzerland in 1986 (trade name: Glucobay). As the first FDA-approved alpha-glycosidase inhibitor in the world, it entered China in 1994 and is now recommended as a first-line drug for type 2 diabetes. Acarbose is sold far better in China than in developed countries because it reduces glucose uptake mainly by inhibiting amylase and is more suitable for Asians who eat mainly carbohydrates.

Although Acarbose has been marketed in China for more than 20 years, China's Acarbose market is dominated by Bayer, Hangzhou Zhongmei Huadong Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. and Sichuan Luye Baoguang Pharmaceutical Co., Ltd. because it is difficult to imitate Acarbose. In recent years, the market share of Bayer's Acarbose (trade name: Glucobay) is declining in China year by year, while the market share of domestic-made counterparts is rising. In 2017, the market size of Acarbose in China was about CNY 1.09 billion. Bayer's market share was about 66.4%, showing a continued momentum of decline.

According to CRI, from 2018 to 2022, the market size will continue to grow as the number of diabetic patients increases.